Erik didn’t know about what happened to Charles on the beach until a couple of days later, when Emma decided it was time to tell him. He thought about going back to Charles, but he never could convince himself to really do it. Instead he bought himself a chessboard and placed it in his room, in front of his bed, where he could move just one piece a day to see how long it took him to finish a game without his best opponent.
Erik never threw away the bullet that he pulled out of Charles’ back that day on the beach. He always carried it in his pocket instead of the coin. The coin was a reminder of the pain someone else inflicted on him, a thing to be used for vengeance. The bullet is a reminder of the pain he inflicted on someone else, on Charles. Sometimes he closes his fist around it and he swears he can feel it burn.
